I loved comics as a kid! I grew up with the Dandy and Beano (which I’m now a writer for, which is pretty awesome. I think 10 year-old me would be happy!), and also Whizzer and Chips and Buster. When I was a teenager I discovered X-Men and then got into a lot of American comics, especially indie comics. I was a huge fan of Manga too and everything I read has played a huge part in influencing my own art. My work on The Phoenix is very much based on what I know I would have loved reading as a kid; very odd characters in odd situations and lots of toilet humour! I love making the extraordinary ordinary so you’ll find a lot of magical creatures doing boring things like getting their homework done on time and washing up!

Brilliantly illustrated by the winner of the 2021 Blue Peter Best Book with Facts Award for A Day in the Life of a Poo, a Gnu and You. Did you read comics a child? Although it is changing, in the UK they are often quite maligned, is there more of a culture surrounding them in the US? Anonymoose and Owlfred (special agents for Woodland HQ) are one case away from solving their 100 th case. Then Camo Cameleon (Agent Moose’s arch rival) solves his 100 th case first. Anonymoose is not amused. When they travel to Camo Cameleon’s patch to find a missing witness from Camo’s last case- everything is not as it seems.You are an actor as well as a writer, does this inform your writing and events at all? Conversely, do you feel your writing influences your acting? Jess Bradley also kindly took part in the interview, we asked Jess if she read comics as a child and also about her work on The Phoenix comic Candy Gourlay and I run the PULSE strand of SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators) events which is aimed at our published authors. As you know SCBWI British Isles as a whole and PULSE specifically have been keen to connect more with librarians especially YLG. We have done some fun joint events so far (pre pandemic) and hope to do joint panels, talks, socials and even conferences perhaps in the future. I think we both have so many common goals, promoting reading for pleasure especially and also just getting the right books in the hands of the right kids. Librarians work that voodoo. They are the people who, if given the opportunity, can impact a child’s reading life immensely. Authors and Illustrators are the content makers. We put our ideas and words and pictures out there into the world but feel powerless sometimes about how we can get those words and pictures into he hands of our future readers. Librarians and Authors (writers and Illustrators) truly have a symbiotic relationship. With a few missteps and hilarious disguises galore, the duo interview a cast of animal residents to solve the mystery. This brilliantly funny and accessible graphic novel stars quirky, likable characters and has just the right amount of witty spy humour to entertain and engage young readers. Can you tell us a little about how the process of creating the book worked and what kind of collaboration – if any you had with Jess Bradley?

Bestselling author Alexandra Christo, author of TikTok sensation To Kill a Kingdom, introduces her new book, The Night Hunt (Hot Key Books), a dark... Jess Bradley's illustrations are absolutely fantastic. These are books that you can read over and over again. Agent Moose (Annonymoose) has to prove himself after mistakenly thinking that the moon had been moonnapped, when there had just been a total lunar eclipse. Another agent - CamoCameleon - is being celebrated for being the first agent to solve one hundred cases. Agent Moose is very cheesed off as HE wanted to be the first to one hundred. Towards the end there’s a threat by the perpetrator (no spoilers in this interview!) ‘You haven’t seen the last of me’ can we expect any future outings? CWISL (Children’s Writers and Illustrators for Stories and Literacy), Herne Hill Station Hall, Herne Hill Forum and Tales on Moon Lane bookshop were all involved in the creation and running of the festival. We all hope to take it forward to continue to connect local kids with authors and illustrators.We are delighted to feature an interview with children's author extraordinaire Mo O'Hara. Mo is the author of the brilliantly funny My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish books and is a huge friend and supporter of libraries. We are doubly excited about this interview because Mo's illustrator for her new graphic novel, Agent Moose, Jess Bradley has joined us for some questions too. BOOK 2: Moose on a Mission - There’s big news in the Big Forest! The circus is in town, Granny Moose is coming to visit, and someone is stealing from innocent animals. Agent Moose and Owlfred rush to investigate, with Granny along for the ride! Something fishy is going on at the South Shore. Folks just disappear and are never seen again. But when Agent Moose learns that a key witness has gone missing, he and Owlfred ride to the rescue. Will they find the missing turtle before time runs out?